this blog is about my random thoughts and things that I enjoy doing, like painting,cooking and baking new stuff, reading books , watching movies and beauty and fashion related subjects. this is a place that I will talk and share about my own experiences on fun stuff that most gals ( or guys) like to talk about

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Hello lovelies, hope you are fine and had a pleasant weekend and week so far. today sunject will be face moisturizer and in particular: TOLERIANE FLUID by LA ROCHE-POSAY

I am a big fan of La Roche-Posay products; I used a couple of them which actually loved. It’s a French skin care line with products for any skin type and problem. I know they use to have also foundation but not anymore which I don’t know why. They are sold here in Canada at Pharmaprix (Shoppers drug mart) and Jean Coutu stores. They are little bit on the pricy side but honestly they worth every penny.

In this post I will talk about one of my recent La Roche-Posay product called:

About Novemner 2011 I started to use 2 Kiehl's product (which were awful by the way) and my skin started to react very badly, it became red, very dry and irritated. So I needed a moisturizer that could help the dryness but at the same time suitable for oily skin since I did not want to have any breakouts. And also something that was suitable for my current condition which was red and irritated skin.
The TOLERIANE line was just the perfect match, they are basically for sensitive, intolerant skins which could react easily to most chemical products. That’s why TOLERIANE moisturizers are mostly composed of water (about 50%) and minimum chemicals so any skin could tolerate. This is by far the lightest moisturizer I ever use. It comes as white milky liquid and absorbs to skin very fast without the feeling of greasy or anything.
It is ideal for combination to oily, intolerant skin;and also recommended for ezcema, rosacea, and acne-prone skins on their website.
As I said it has little but effective number of ingredients: Glycerin acts as a hydrating agent; Squalane acts as an emollient and skin protectant and Thermal Spring Water is a soothing antioxidant.
This is my absolute favorite moisturizer ever and I did repurchase it again...
Hope this was helpful to you
Have a great Tuesday :)

Monday, May 30, 2011

Friday : Hamburger I also participate in Laura's Menu Plan Monday post. as the week progress I will update this post with the pictures and if you like to know more details about any of the recipes please let me know ;)

Have a great week everyone :)

Mania

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

For Friday we were not at home, we went out with friends to a poker fundraising tournament so we had dinner there.

Sunday, May 29, 2011

This is one of the things that I made last week for the first time and it was really. it is little bit on the spicy side but still delicious so if you are not a big spicy person just ease off on those cayenne peppers. this recipe uses Cajun seasoning which I also made myself so it's recipe is also down there.

Ingredients for Cajun seasoning:

1/4cup(50 mL) paprika

1/4cup(50 mL) dried parsley

2tbsp(25 mL) garlic powder

2tbsp(25 mL) dried oregano

2tbsp(25 mL) dried thyme

1tsp(5 mL) salt

1/2tsp(2 mL) cayenne pepper

Mix all these together in a bowl together, you could make this ahead and store at room temperature.

Ingredients for Cajun shrimp and rice (this amount serves 4)

1 tablespoon of unsalted butter

2 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning

1 pound of large shrimp

4 chopped plum tomatoes

2 chopped scallions

3 cups of cooked white rice

3 tablespoon of chopped fresh parsley

Salt and pepper

Lemon for serving

In a large skillet heat the butter, olive-oil and garlic over medium heat for about 1 minute.

Add the Cajun seasoning and shrimp, cook it for about 2 minutes or until the shrimp begin to curl. season with salt and pepper.

Add the tomatoes, scallions to the skillet and cook for about 1 minute.

Add the rice and 1/4 cup water and let them cook with lid on for about 4-5 minutes.

Stir the parsley on top and serve it with lemon if you like. as I mentioned before this is really good and if you try it I am sure you won't be disappointed.

Another Friday is here and oh my this week was even faster :). well what we can do, other than trying to take the most of the days because like it or not they go fast ...Here are my this week's 5 favorite stuffs:

1. Having a beautiful long weekend, I wish every week was like this: 3 days of fun weekend; well ,it's just a wish. the weather was great and we enjoyed it a LOT, did a lot of walking outside, going to movies.... I managed to start my closet cleaning and I discovered (!!) lots of stuff that I owned but kinda were forgotten due to new stuff coming on top :) so all good.

2. Vichy cream blush in Bronze, I started to wear my cream bronzer this week ( which I had for couple of years) . I used it every day of the week. since it's a cream product it blends very well into the skin and gives a nice glowy bronzed look, exactly in placed that sun normally hit:) I use kabuki brush and blend it on back of my hand ( so I don't have excessive product on my face) and blend it to my skin then depending on how much darker I want to go I use more from my hand or not. blending it well is the key to prevent from having Adidas stripes on the face ;) believe me that I've seen faces like that.

3. This is my all time favorite song of Lifehouse and it gives me goose bumps every time I listen to them. ....Even if I lose the game, I'm all in, I'm all in for life "

4. NBA playoff games, yes I love and enjoy watching them. me and my hubby both have been into NBA playoffs for as long as I remember. this week was conference east and west finals and next week the winner of 2 conferences will play each other in 7 games and we are both cheering for Miami Heats this year against Dallas Mavericks ( which I absolutely can't stand).

5.Reading funny books, I started another book this week and it is hilarious. I am sitting on the couch and reading and suddenly start laughing and my hubby runs and ask me "what ... what happened... what are you laughing at ... "the book is called "One for the Money" by Janet Evanovich and it is a mystery book but her way of writing and storytelling is so funny!! I love it and it's in series so I'll be reading her books for a while :)

That was all for this week, hope you all enjoyed your week and have a nice weekend:)Love,Mania

Thursday, May 26, 2011

This could be the best citrus cake I ever had in my life. it is so good. I've been noticing that I say that in most of my posts, well the truth is that I baked or cooked stuff in the past that were not delicious and ended up in the garbage bag right after. I never right about those recipes because it would go like that:

" mix this with that, let it cook and then put it in the garbage because it tastes awful" !! so what kind of a recipe that would be !? the ones that I post here are the ones that I enjoyed and I think worth a try so yes they're sooo good :)

so now let's get down to baking, shall we:

Ingredients:

12 tablespoons of butter, cubed, at room temperature

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup orange juice

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

7-ounce tube almond paste ( about 200g)

7 large eggs

4 teaspoons lemon zest

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

First preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease Bundt pan ( or any pan you like) and dust with flour.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. in another bowl beat almond paste and 2 cups sugar with electrical mixer until smooth. Add the butter and continue beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the zest and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.

Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Spread batter into prepared baking pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until tooth-stick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool slightly.

For making the citrus syrup, heat lemon juice, orange juice and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar in a small saucepan on low and cook until the sugar dissolves.

Poke deep holes in the the cake and pour the syrup over top, letting it rest for 30 minutes in order to let the juices soak in. Remove from pan and serve at room temperature.

It's better to put it in the fridge for about an hour or so and then serve it. it has a sweet sour taste because of citrus and very soft texture. you won't be disappointed :)

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Well, I am a nail polish junkie and there is no secret to that. I have nail polish on my nail 90% of the times and on my toes all the time I don't know why but I just enjoy that very much.

Today I thought it would be nice to talk about my favorite colors for summer, there is no specific rule on wearing specific colors for summer or winter but there are some feelings that associate with different colors, so that's why I use some colors more in summer times :) that's my personal opinion....

There are mostly colors that are hot like pink or peach; or colors that are on nude side and goes perfect with tanned skin like light purple, cream nude...; and there are blue and light green tones colors, and absolutely not dark purple, green or blue. I know neon colors are SO in this summer (like last year) but I'm not a big fan. I also don't reach for dark navy, green, gray, purple ... colors during the summer times.

From Left to Right:1. Revlon Lilac Pastel ( which is a purple with more pink undertone)2. essie St.Lucia Lilac ( is a purple with more blue undertone)3. essie secret affair (which is a very light beige with lots of tiny shimmer, not a matte color)4. essie Topless&Barefoot ( which is light beige, perfect nude, it's the same color of the light sand beach, LOVE it)

From Left to Right:
1. Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Racy Rouge ( a hot pink-red color, perfect for toes anytime of the year and looks great on nails for summer, I love the fast drying thing but kinda have love/hate relationship with the brush) 2. essie Fiesta ( bright medium pink that screams summer, very cheery, happy color, I love it all year around specially to pick up the mood in winter days but it's perfect for sunny summer days too)

3.Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Peachy Breeze ( LOVE this color, it's opaque peach color)4.Sally Hansen Insta-Dri in Sonic Bloom ( orange-red color and kinda punch in the face color might not be good though for some but I love it)

5. Teenage Dream by OPI ( which is a clear color with full of glitters and that's why it looks pink, I do not wear this on my all nails because it is too much for me, just in one finger on top of another nail polish)

6. Sally Hansen xtreme wear in Caribbean Coral ( very bright orange-red color with very fine shimmer to it, I don't like the application though )

From Left to Right:1. essie Van D'Go (LOVE LOVE the color it's a gorgeous creamy pinky peach color but I hate the formula and application it chip on the 1st day and it's a pain in you know where to get a even color without strikes )2. Revlon in Pink Lingerie ( nice anytime color and it dries fast)

3. OPI in Kiss on the Chic ( milky tone pink color, beautiful and classy, perfect for anytime. to get an opaque finish need 3 coats though)4. OPI in Mod About You ( very pastel, opaque baby pink color, looks very pretty on nails as well as toes. it might get streaky on the 1st coat but let it dry and then apply the 2nd one and it would be pretty)

From Left to Right1.Sally Hansen xtreme wear in Marnie scene (gorgeous teal color. It's a blue-green colour with gold/green shimmer to it. it's very sheer though and needs at least 3 coats)2.Revlon in Ocean Breeze ( a tealish-blue color, little bit smells like ocean when it dries, looks really good with tanned skin)3. Sally Hansen xtreme wear in Blue Me Away ( very pretty bright blue, great summer color)4. China Gaze in Caribbean Blue ( very nice opaque blue with tiny tiny blue shimmers)5. Nicole by OPI in my life saver ( is a soft, creamy and very opaque mint green, love the color ;hate the application)

There is only one color left and that is RED. I think Red colors are universal, they look good on every skin tone and every time of the year, on toes or nails; it's just the matter of finding the right red shade for your skin. So that's all my picks for summer, what are your favorite nail polishes, love to hear your picks

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Hello my beautiful friends, I 'm here with another book review which I finished last week. this book was lend to me by one of my friends :) and was my first book by Amy Tan.

This book is a story of eight Chinese women, four mothers who immigrated to US and their four American born daughters. each section of the book is written from each one point of view, like mothers talk about their pasts and their relationship with their daughters and vice versa. it is kinda weird but it is interesting because we hear the same story but with different voices and it shows how 2 person can see the same event differently.

The "Joy Luck Club" started by one of the mothers who gathered her 3 friends in US and create a club that met every week ( I'm not sure about that though) and play cards and talk about their lives. the purpose of the club was to talk about their good times in the past and good times yet to come and each week with a hope to be lucky and that hope was their only joy through hard times. although that's the name of the book, it does not focus on the club and their meetings at all !

The book shows mother-daughter relationship, it make you think about your own mother and you being as a mother yourself, the feeling of being very different from your mother but at the same time very similar!

There were parts that I absolutely hated the mothers or daughters like the when mothers ( or in general parents) push their children to show some talent or being genius ( like playing chess or playing piano) to a point that is not fun for the child anymore and it is only for pleasing themselves or showing off their kids' talent in front of others. or when they say something embarrassing to their daughter in front of their friends which was like crushing them. I hated that daughters always tried to change or judge their mothers and did not accept that they are from different culture and background!! it was interesting to see that non of the daughters had a good relationship with their spouses which I did not know why!

Sometimes I felt that it was difficult to keep track of all the characters and their lives, but at the beginning of the book all their names is written ( who is whose daughter and mother stuff) and anytime I felt that I was lost I backed to the first page with the names.

Another complain that I could say about this book was that I felt the chapter of each person's story finished so fast when I still wanted to go on and read more about that specific storyline.

In overall I enjoyed her writing very much, she is a great storyteller and I could really feel the emotions in the writing. it is really smooth read, I could sit and read without noticing the time and I can just go on and on about this book....
I absolutely LOVED the book and it will always stay in my heart :) thanks to my dear friend for lending me, it was amazing. I'm gonna buy it for myself though since I go back and read my favorite parts of it.

If you are looking for a good book to read, I highly recommend this one

Monday, May 23, 2011

So it's Monday again and I did our weekly menu with my hubby Sunday morning since we wanted to know if we should go grocery shopping or not and we only need yogurt for this week, so yohoo for that :)
You know that I bought a bread machine few months ago and I make all the dough for pizza and calzone and 2 weeks ago I did find a very good recipe for sandwich rolls and I made it ( we always buy our breads from Costco); we loved the home made sandwich rolls . so it's been 2 weeks now that I make our own sandwich breads and we did not shop for any breads at all; but will see how long this will go :)
So enough of me rambling; let's see this weeks menu, shall we :

Monday :Kabab Koobide ( is a Persian dish made of barbequed minced meat). since this was a long weekend here in Canada we will be off Monday so it would be easy to cook this one.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Well it's Friday so yaaaaaaaaay for that :) now that I'm sitting behind my computer and thinking what I did these past few days, It made me think "wow this was a fast week but a good one" :)
Here is my this week's Friday Five:

1.Eucerin Aquaphor cream which is like a thicker and less smellier version of Vaseline. I have one of these on my night stand and use it before I go to bed every night. it leaves my lips soft and also could be use in place of lip-gloss in day. when I'm wearing a shoe and it starts to hurt my feet, I also use it and it reduces the friction so it would not hurt anymore.

2. last week I had a little incident with my feet and all week I needed a comfortable shoes to keep me on running around. for me converse shoes are the best, this is not my actual shoes since I had them for several years and they are little bit worn. but I have the same style and color, I prefer the short ones;love these shoes and they feel so comfortable.

3. I am honestly love every song Pitbull has been in it so far and this by far my most favorite. there is something about his accent and voice that makes every song very catchy. and I have to say I don't care if they are sometimes singing some stupid stuff, I love it anyway and this is going to be my summer song; love it big time :) "so tonight let's enjoy life ..."

4. Flowers, this past week no matter when or where I saw a flower I stopped and took a picture. the weather past week was all rainy and gray and these flowers kinda gave me the sense that it would get better. they are everywhere and each have different colors, I enjoy looking at them and maybe it would be silly to some by they make me happy :)

5. I used to paint a lot then I stopped for some reasons, the again I decided to start them again last year because they made me relax. recently I got back to my habit; I guess the main reason was my sister who also doing some painting but with chalk pastels and we were discussing it over the phone a lot and she kinda inspired me to take out my stuff and enjoy them all over again :)

Ok that was this week's top 5, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. till next time :)

Thursday, May 19, 2011

This was on my baking list for SO long because it is my favorite pie of all time. I love the taste of almond in anything and it goes very well with pear here. we usually get this pie from "Première Moisson" which I love. I looked for a good ( and by that I mean easy) and I found a few which I will try one by one.

Here is the first one and the easiest one :

Ingredient for the pastry:

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 icing sugar

1/2 cup butter

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoon chilled water

Ingredients for the tart:

3 firm pears

1 tablespoon of lemon juice

1 tablespoon water or rum

4 tablespoon of orange preserve

Ingredient for the almond filling:

3/4 almonds ( I use the original almonds with their skin on)

1/4 cup caster sugar

5 tablespoon butter

1 egg

1 egg white

1/2 teaspoon of almond essence or rose water

First step like always heat up the oven to 350C.

In a bowl mix the flour, salt and sugar together. cut the butter into small cubes and mix the with dry ingredients. the mixture will resembles breadcrumbs.

then mix the egg yolks and water and mix to make a dough. put it in the fridge for about 30 minutes to chill.

When it's time, take out the dough and roll it on the surface with a roller. then spread the layer of pastry on the pie pan and put it back to fridge for 30 more minutes.

Meanwhile, let's make the filling. put the almonds and sugar in the food processor and plus them till they are finely ground but not like powder. add the butter and process until creamy. them mix the egg, egg white and almond essence.

Thinly peel and slice the pears as shown here and sprinkle lemon juice on them. put them cut side down and keep the slices together.

Pour the almond filling into the pastry case. slide a wide knife under the pear half and press them with your fingers to fan out the slices.then transfer them to the tart on top of the filling.

Place the tart into the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes or till the filling is set and lightly browned.

While tart is getting ready in the oven, heat the rum or water and preserve in a small pan, then brush over the hot tart to glaze ( this step could be ignored, I found it unnecessary !). when tart cooled down, take a slice and enjoy !

If you are a fan of tart, definitely try this one you won't be disappointed, it is easy, as well as delicious :) I think I did well for the my first time ;)

About Me

wellcome to my blog

Well, Hello there. I'm Mania. Wellcome to my Blog.

I love beautiful things: Design, art, photography, flowers, landscapes, pottery, jewellery, fashion, colours, music, people. I love to smile, basically I smile all the time and when I am not definitely something is wrong.

I love cooking and baking and eating. I enjoy experiencing new food and recipes. I try to have a healthy appetite but I do not ban myself from eating anything.

I enjoy keeping healthy and active. I like working out and doing exercises, yoga, taking walks and being outdoors.I enjoy dancing and dancing related workouts at gym and I’d like to do a bit more of them specially Latin dancing.

I’m a bit obsessed about shopping. Clothes, shoes, jewellery, make up and anything girly. But I’m a careful shopper; I’m always on the hunt for a bargain and deals. I do consider myself as a good shopper (which was also told by my friends), I am always on the search of well priced items which does not necessary means cheap, as cheap items will turn out to have cheap qualities too.

I enjoy being crafty, like drawing, painting, sewing, knitting and I wish I had more time to do each one of them.

I love going out, sitting in cafes, dining out, house gatherings, parties, barbecues, picnics! I live in a place that has winter for almost 6 months, so I cherish every minute of summer weather by outdoor activity of any kind.In winter times, I can’t think of anything more satisfying than sitting in front of TV, relaxing on a mushy couch, eating take-outs, lights on low, in my PJs and watching TV or reading. I’m a home girl at heart. I also love to go to movies, theatre, musicals, and spectacle occasionally.

Basically, I try to live a balanced life. Fun. Serious. Fast. Slow. Brainy. Relax. Intense. Lazy. My working situation is kinda serious, intense so I try to balance everything with my other passions. This blog is where I write about things I love to do, things that help me to keep my life in balance